How Drawish Are Opposite-Coloured Bishops (part three)?

HERE is another opposite-coloured bishops ending I did not include in my series Opposite Exceptions.

White has just captured on e5 in Spanton (147 BCF) - Hass Ha'eri-Zadeh (-), Highbury (London) Rapid 1990

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27...Kg6 28.Bxc7

White is three pawns up, but it will not be a simple matter creating a second passed pawn on the queenside.

28...Bc6 29.Ke3 Kf7 30.g4 g6 31.f5 Bd7 32.fxg6+?!

It was almost certainly better to advance the white king before making an exchange.

32...Kxg6 33.Kf4 Kf6 34.f4 Be6 35.Ba5 Bc4 36.Bd2 Be2 37.g5+ hxg5 38.hxg5+

White has a second passed pawn, but the passers are near to each other, making them less effective in this type of ending as they are more easily restrained by Black.

38...Ke6 39.e5?!

There is no need to rush forward with this pawn and so give up control of the d5 and f5 squares. Probably better is queenside play, starting, for example, with 39.b3.

39...Bd1 40.c3

Now Black's two queenside pawns hold up three white ones.

40...Bh5 41.Be3 Bg6 42.Bd4 Kd5 43.Ke3 Kc4?

It is difficult for White to make progress after a waiting move such as 43...Bh5.

White to play and win

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44.Kd2?!

Stockfish15.1 and Komodo14.1 give 44.e6, eg 44...Kd5 45.e7 Ke6 46.Bf6 Kd5 47.Kf4 Ke6 (47...Bf7 48.Kf5) 48.c4! bxc4 49.Ke3 Kd5 50.Kd2 Be8 51.Kc3 Kc5 52.Bg7 Bf7 53.Bf8 (threatens 54.e8=Q+) Kd5 (53...Be8 54.g6 ) 54.Kb4 Be8 55.Ka5 Ke5 56.Kb6 Kf5 57.Kc7 Kxg5 58.Kd8 Bc6 59.e8=Q Bxe8 60.Kxe8 with a simple win.
44...Kd5 45.Ke3 Ke6?

Marking time with the bishop puts up considerably stiffer resistance.

46.Kf4

The engines point out a pretty win by 46.b3! axb3 47.c4! bxc4 48.a4 etc.

46...Kd5 47.Be3 Ke6

HH-Z offered a draw.

Stockfish15.1 reckons 47...Kc4!? draws, but Komodo14.1 disagrees. Best-play may run 48.Bb6 Kd5 49.Bd8 Bd3 50.Bf6 Bg6 51.Kg4 Ke4!? 52.e6!? Kd5 53.e7 Ke4 54.Kg3 Be8, when the engines still strongly disagree, but this may be one of those rare positions where a three-pawn advantage is not enough.

48.Bb6 Kd5 49.Bd8 Ke6?!

Stockfish15.1 reckons marking time with the bishop on the h7-b1 diagonal is best, although Komodo14.1 reckons that still loses.

50.Bf6

50.c4!? bxc4 51.Bf6 seems to win in a similar way to the note at move 44.

50...Kd5 51.Ke3 Bf5 52.Kf3 Bg6 53.Bg7 Ke6?! 54.Ke3

Again sacrificing the c pawn looks promising.

54...Kd5 55.e6!? Kxe6

White is two pawns up, but Stockfish15.1 reckons Black is holding, although Komodo14.1 gives White the upper hand

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56.Kd4 Kf7

Better may be 56...Kf5!?

57.Bf6 Bc2 58.c4!?

Ironically, perhaps, now that this pawn push is no longer a sacrifice, the engines do not much like it. Instead they suggest 58.Kc5 Bd3 59.Kb4, although as usual disagreeing as to how much of an advantage White has.

58...bxc4 59.Kxc4 Bb3+ 60.Kd4 Bc2 61.b4!? axb3 62.Kc3 Ke6 63.Kc4 Kd7 64.Kd5 1-0 (Time)

The final position is a tablebase draw.